I’ve listened to a number of AM GOLD compilations (you can read my review of 1967 here, 1968 here, 1976 here, and 1977 here. AM GOLD 1965 from 1994 features plenty of hits from the mid-1960s but dodges most of the British Invasion groups from that era: no Beatles, Stones, Kinks, Who, etc.
The first James Bond film I ever saw was Goldfinger. When the soundtrack to Goldfinger came out in 1965, I bought it and wore out the groves!
“Movie producers Albert Broccoli and Harry Saltzman allowed him [John Barry] to write the theme song for Goldfinger in addition to the soundtrack.[1] Barry created the melody of the song before drafting the lyrics with the help of Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse.[2] The theme was first sung by Newley at a demo session on 14 May 1964. At the behest of Barry, Shirley Bassey was chosen to sing the track. On Bassey, Barry was quoted saying ‘Nobody could have sung it like her; she had that great dramatic sense.’ The theme was recorded on 20 August 1964 after an all-night session in the recording studio.[3] The session was produced by EMI in-house producer George Martin, who also was the Beatles‘ producer at the time. Guitarist Vic Flick, who played on the track, recalled at a 2012 Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences salute to the music of James Bond that Bassey was having difficulty getting a proper take. Martin spoke to her and then over the recording baffle her brassiere came flying. She nailed it on the next take.” (Wikipedia]
Peter and Gordon don’t show up on many of the compilation CDs but they’re here with “I Go To Pieces.”
“Do You Believe in Magic” by The Lovin’ Spoonful still gets regular airplay on our local Oldies radio station, as does The Seekers’ “I’ll Never Find Another You.” I remember the Smothers Brothers singing this song as”I’ll Never Find Another Ewe.”
Mix in some Motown classics like The Temptations’ “My Girl” and Smoky Robinson and The Miracles’ “Track of My Tears” and overall this may be the best of the AM GOLD series. Do you remember these songs? Any favorites here? GRADE: A-
TRACK LIST:
| 1 | Sonny And Cher*– | I Got You Babe Music By, Lyrics By – Sonny Bono | 3:12 |
| 2 | Petula Clark– | Downtown Music By, Lyrics By – Tony Hatch | 3:05 |
| 3 | Jackie DeShannon– | What The World Needs Now Is Love Lyrics By – Hal David Music By – Burt Bacharach | 3:11 |
| 4 | The Temptations– | My Girl Music By, Lyrics By – Ronald White, William Robinson* | 2:43 |
| 5 | Peter And Gordon*– | I Go To Pieces Music By, Lyrics By – Del Shannon | 2:22 |
| 6 | Wayne Fontana And The Mindbenders*– | Game Of Love Music By, Lyrics By – Clint Ballard Jr. | 2:08 |
| 7 | Tom Jones– | What’s New Pussycat? Lyrics By – Hal David Music By – Burt Bacharach | 2:06 |
| 8 | The Lovin’ Spoonful– | Do You Believe In Magic Music By, Lyrics By – John Sebastian | 2:05 |
| 9 | The Beach Boys– | California Girls Music By, Lyrics By – Brian Wilson | 2:34 |
| 10 | Barbara Lewis– | Make Me Your Baby Music By, Lyrics By – Helen Miller, Roger Arkins | 2:32 |
| 11 | The Righteous Brothers– | You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’ Music By, Lyrics By – Barry Mann, Cynthia Weil, Phil Spector | 3:44 |
| 12 | The Miracles– | The Tracks Of My Tears Music By, Lyrics By – Marv Tarplin*, William Robinson*, Warren Moore | 2:55 |
| 13 | Gary Lewis And The Playboys*– | This Diamond Ring Music By, Lyrics By – Al Kooper, Bob Brass (2), Irwin Levine | 2:14 |
| 14 | The Fortunes– | You’ve Got Your Troubles Music By, Lyrics By – Roger Cook, Roger Greenaway | 3:23 |
| 15 | The Seekers– | I’ll Never Find Another You Music By, Lyrics By – Dion O’Brien | 2:45 |
| 16 | The Vogues– | You’re The One Music By, Lyrics By – Petula Clark, Tony Hatch | 2:22 |
| 17 | Shirley Bassey– | Goldfinger Lyrics By – Anthony Newley, Leslie BricusseMusic By – John Barry | 2:50 |
| 18 | The Ramsey Lewis Trio– | The “In” Crowd Music By – Billy Page | 3:14 |
| 19 | The Supremes– | Back In My Arms Again Music By, Lyrics By – Brian Holland, Edward Holland, Jr., Lamont Dozier | 2:52 |
| 20 | We Five– | You Were On My MindMusic By, Lyrics By – Sylvia Fricker | 2:37 |
| 21 | Bobby Goldsboro– | Little Things Music By, Lyrics By – Bobby Goldsboro | 2:28 |
| 22 | Roger Miller– | King Of The Road Music By, Lyrics By – Roger Miller | 2:27 |
Two of my all-time favorites here: “You’re the One” (did not realize Petulia Clark was a co-writer on that one) and “I’ll Never Find Another You”. Also, I was today years old when I discovered that Anthony Newley & Leslie Briccuse wrote the lyrics for “Goldfinger”. I’m still learning new things every day!
Deb, I was a 16-year-old teen in 1965 seeing my first James Bond film. When Shirley Bassey belts out “Goldfinger” I felt like my head would explode! I hadn’t heard anything like it!
“Gold-FINGAH!…Such a cold FINGAH!” I think I would’ve guessed had I known of Newley, particularly, by the time I first heard the song. (My own first Bond film experiences were on television…I was fondest at age 9 of YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE. (I was born a week and change before “Goldfinger” was being recorded.)
The only songs I didn’t immediately recognize were “I Go to Pieces” (once I put it on and confirmed it wasn’t a cover the Patsy Cline hit) and Goldsboro;s “Little Things”
Todd, I bought the soundtrack to GOLDFINGER and played in constantly back in 1965!
Another fact uncovered: the writer of “I’ll Never Find Another You”, Dion O’Brien, was also known as Tom Springfield, brother of Dusty Springfield!
Deb, you are a font of musical knowledge!
This was the year I started kindergarten and my mom also started letting me go with her on errands meaning it was my introduction to the car radio so a lot here is familiar. For some reason I was and remain somewhat enamored of “Downtown” (as was Glenn Gould, of all people). Similarly, “Do You Believe in Magic” always makes me smile. This also would have been the year my mom and aunts became obsessed with Tom Jones.
I didn’t know the Anthony Newley connection with “Goldfinger.” To me he’ll always be the guy from “Dr. Doolittle” who also sang that creepy clown song on “The Tonight Show” (seemingly every time he was a guest).
Byron, my mother was a big Tom Jones fan, too. I’m sure I’ve listened to a few thousand hours of music on various car radios over the years.
Do I remember these songs? This is my era! There is nothing I don’t remember. As Deb knows, I have two small notebooks from 1964 and 1965, in which I kept a weekly record of the top 25 songs as listed on my preferred station, WMCA.
My favorites in this group? My Girl, What the World Needs Now Is Love, You Were On My Mind, The Tracks Of My Tears, but I like most of them.
Music was so much better then.
Now get off my lawn.
Jeff, you’re right. The music was much better in 1965 than now. And AM GOLD 19965 ignores some of the Big British acts like The Beatles, Stones, etc. It was a great year for music!
Music was new to you mid-’60s kids (as opposed to infants like myself, for whom Everything was new)…the Top 40 tended to be better, but there was always “Englebert Humperdinck” and the like to drag down the side. The music you had and have to go seek out was good then and still is…and the music business is similar if not quite the same sorts of crooked, while there are means for musical artists to support themselves that at least were a bit more difficult back when (albeit having a hostile administration doing its best to destroy the world makes everything a bit less fun).
Todd, I listen to Sirius/XM Radio mostly because most of our local stations–who used to play music–have been bought up and converted to Talk Radio.
Solid Playlist from my freshman spring of HS, good mix of iicons and the little remembered. I’d have used Dobie Grey’s version of IN CROWD instead of Lewis’, but tastes vary.
Fred, FATHER OF LIES/MIRROR IMAGE is in the mail to you. Check your mailbox about mid-week.
Grey’s recording of “The In Crowd” is vastly better, indeed.
Todd, I’m with you on Grey’s rendition of “The In Crowd.”
THIS DIAMOND RING shows what miracles an echo chamber hath wrought.
Jerry, you’re exactly right about wonders of the Echo Chamber! And, maybe some payola…
It’s true. Every time we hear a song by Gary Lewis on Sirius, I comment on how weak his voice was, and how much of his (admittedly short-lived) success was due to who his father was.
Jeff, Gary Lewis and Nancy Sinatra had the same leverage in the Music Industry…
For once, I recognize and like all of them. Just wish it had included more of the British invasion ones.
Maggie, I have a CD complication of British Invasion songs. That will be on the blog soon!
Coincidentally, 1965 was the year I graduated high school and sang lead in The Violations, the foremost garage band in Peekskill, NY! We did mostly Beatles, Stones, Daave Clark Five, and Chuck Berry! Alas, my borderline voice and a throat sprain conspired to get me fired before the summer was out! Of the five band members. three are dead, one’s fate is unknown to me, and I’m the fifth, still kicking after all these years! All the music from those days is dear to me!
Bob, I’m glad you’re a survivor!